Hi Robert.I see now that it is ex Egypt and ‘‘retired’’.Does this mean you have returned to the UK,or have you found somewhere even more obscure to spend your remaining days,[maybe Tibet or Pyong Yang]. 
hutpik:
Hi Robert.I see now that it is ex Egypt and ‘‘retired’’.Does this mean you have returned to the UK,or have you found somewhere even more obscure to spend your remaining days,[maybe Tibet or Pyong Yang].
No, back in UK now. It means I can do things like attend that excellent Middle-East seminar at the Gaydon Retro Show last weekend to catch up on a few old chums, and meet a few TNUK bods as well. Robert
Before we rush to feed trolls, I reckon we might stand back a while to let Sashmash justify his apparently eccentric route. Let’s face it, we have all taken rather strange paths at times (like the trip I did via Ventilmilia / Menton to see if was cheaper than going Frejus!). Robert 
Whilst i am in full agreement with you as to the fact that we have all at some time[sometimes unwillingly]taken detours of hundreds of kms out of our route i am still at a loss to comprehend the routing of Sashmash at that time.Permits were not such a problem,as he managed to transit most of Europé and East Block and then,when almost at Kapik\Ipsala he catches a boat to Syria.After arriving in Syria he then returns to Turkey[possibly via Bab-el-Hawa\Cilvegozu]then has to either transit via Gazientep up to Gurbulak,or continue straight on past Sanli-Urfa to Yuksekova to go into Iran.Maybe today these routes are better but certainly in the early 70’s they were considered somewhat less than ideal,both due to the geography and indigenous populations of the areas.I drove these routes but once and that was once too much.Even with the time lost entering Turkey and exiting the other end it makes no economic sense.Regardless of what the trip paid the transport industry is notoriously tight fisted and will squeeze every penny out of a trip so would be loath to pay for an Adriatic\Agean cruiseand added the transit of Southern Turkey\Kurdistan with such a mouth watering load,and making a 4week trip double.Many of us have taken stuff to Iran for the Shah during those times.The only advantage was that the customs were more efficient and sometimes delivery was expedited more quickly.
robert1952:
There was a period in the '70s (before I was doing Middle-East) when the queues at the Bulgaria-Turkey border at Kapic, and again at exit borders from Turkey were so long, chaotic, corrupt and dodgy that many companies did indeed take the ferry from Volos in Greece to Tartus in Syria. Tartus is their 2nd port (to Latakia). This rather ■■■■■■■■■■ route also had the advantage of missing out the whole of Turkey which in the early '70s still had miles of unmade roads full of bandits and rock-throwing kids. Here’s a nice picture of some Brit trucks lined up on the docks at Tartus waiting for the ferry to Greece. This still leaves the question about why this poster went across the Alps instead of doing Yugo. Robert0
Imagine driving to Syria today.
Yes, and I wonder what has become of the convoy truck stop at Homs. Now that was a proper Middle-East truck stop with atmosphere. I’ve still got a couple of comfy garden chairs I bought there!!
I took this picture driving north out of Damascus. Robert
Sorry,my post should have read only Aegean not Adriatic\Aegean,i was wandering thinking of Trieste.
It does seem a wasted journey to go through northern italy as the majority of us took the german ( munich ) route through austria and yugo although i dont disagree with the op and his route, its just that most companies were trying to save money in that time frame, and the Shar although loaded with dosh would have still been frugal with the rates to get his goods there as most of us had the experience to get a trip done in around the same transit times and rates as others.
Another quote i find amusing was the one where a driver would go through france and under the cover of darkness sneak through the border, i dont know how he got his trip tics stamped as we were under TIR and needed to notify them of the next border, and have the previous page taken out, unless he used his john bull set
truckyboy:
It does seem a wasted journey to go through northern italy as the majority of us took the german ( munich ) route through austria and yugo although i dont disagree with the op and his route, its just that most companies were trying to save money in that time frame, and the Shar although loaded with dosh would have still been frugal with the rates to get his goods there as most of us had the experience to get a trip done in around the same transit times and rates as others.
Another quote i find amusing was the one where a driver would go through france and under the cover of darkness sneak through the border, i dont know how he got his trip tics stamped as we were under TIR and needed to notify them of the next border, and have the previous page taken out, unless he used hisjohn bull set
Ha Ha…dont forget the big 5 Dinar coin and the ink pad, after sneeking through the Yugo side at Gradina and stamping the Carnet with a smudge !! Hooperman taught me that one !
It looked just like the Yugo customs exit stamp.
GS
GS OVERLAND:
truckyboy:
It does seem a wasted journey to go through northern italy as the majority of us took the german ( munich ) route through austria and yugo although i dont disagree with the op and his route, its just that most companies were trying to save money in that time frame, and the Shar although loaded with dosh would have still been frugal with the rates to get his goods there as most of us had the experience to get a trip done in around the same transit times and rates as others.
Another quote i find amusing was the one where a driver would go through france and under the cover of darkness sneak through the border, i dont know how he got his trip tics stamped as we were under TIR and needed to notify them of the next border, and have the previous page taken out, unless he used hisjohn bull setHa Ha…dont forget the big 5 Dinar coin and the ink pad, after sneeking through the Yugo side at Gradina and stamping the Carnet with a smudge !! Hooperman taught me that one !
It looked just like the Yugo customs exit stamp.
GS
I re-sealed a tilt with a pfennig and a pair of pliers on a couple of occasions, though I think that was pretty commonplace! Robert
Ha Ha it was amazing how many tricks we used back in those days no fear I remember a trip we did when i was on for roy bradford, so me and mick hawkins loaded washing powder in turkey for a delivery in yugo, so all went well till we got to the yugo border, we went to a small one that only had 1 guard and a shed, we had a dodgy permit and the guard told us to wait till the next day, anyway we got him distracted while using his stamp to stamp our papers, bit nerve wracking but we managed. also used to use coins to put our mark on receipts, just used a marker pen to black the coin and press it on the blank receipts we had nicked before.
Talking of the tricks that drivers pulled,there was Grant who loved Baccardi and Cola drinking at every stop in the day when on Portugal to the UK.
He had aquired a key that enabled him to make free calls in a coin phone in Spain.
It must have been a key that engineers use.
He loved playing one armed bandit gaming machines.A lady that did his accounts ripped him off.Some sort of owner driver scheme.
He never checked if he was paid for haulage.
As long as he had money for gambling and drinking.
He ran a pub after driving but died a long time ago.
Shady knew him.Shady was on for R&G Ltd.